The suggestion was Thomas Christiansen was a man feeling the heat after a run of seven defeats in nine games.

But the Leeds United manager's demeanour during his press conference duties ahead of the Middlesbrough clash this weekend betrayed that idea.

Christiansen exuded a calmness and a confidence that he has the tools at his disposal to get the result he needs on Sunday.

He stopped short of describing the game as a 'must win' or a 'must not lose' as was the prompt from a particular journalist and, in doing so, avoided the same trap he fell into pre-Brentford, a game he had labelled the former of those two descriptions.

The manager is aware of the size of the task in front of him and a daunting-looking fixture list including meetings with three of the current top six in the next month will provide a stern test of his credentials.

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But in a week in which Angus Kinnear publicly backed the manager, Christiansen was in bullish form at his pre-match briefing to the press and seemed confident he is the man to arrest a slump in form which has seen Leeds go from top to 10th in the Championship.

He seemed to know what he feels has been lacking, notably the "intensity" from the team in his own words.

In the intervening two-week period since the Brentford game, Christiansen took some time off to collect his thoughts and reflect on how his side's momentum had stalled since the previous international hiatus.

There will have been plenty to consider for the manager in the past fortnight, but his message to the players

That confidence even spilled into a warning for Middlesbrough and Garry Monk, with Christiansen hinting that he believes the Teessiders have underachieved to this point.

Garry Monk was given a warning by Thomas Christiansen (Image: Getty Images)

The Leeds United boss is not one for mind games and refused to be drawn too much on the significance of Monk's return to Elland Road, but did apply some pressure to the Boro manager ahead of his much-anticipated return by suggesting fifth place was not where they intended to be at this stage of the season.

He also used the opportunity to send a message to fans ahead of the game.

There has been criticism from some fans over the decision to hand out flags for Sunday's game in a bid to create the perfect atmosphere for such a big match, with pockets of the fanbase believing it to be a PR disaster.

But irrespective of those plans, Christiansen urged the fanbase to remain behind the players and manager and continue to drive his side on, something Kalvin Phillips also referenced prior to Christiansen's arrival at the Lucas Radebe Suite.

It was interesting that he mentioned the need for his players to be more pragmatic when the situation dictates, with his comments on sometimes needing to settle for the draw serving as a reminder following the late defeat at Brentford.

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Kinnear's midweek interviews actually changed little in Christiansen's mind - and he actually brushed off the public vote of confidence by insisting the conversations he has with the key people around him at boardroom level in private are assuring enough.

He retains the overwhelming support of the chairman Andrea Radrizzani and has a cordial working relationship with both Kinnear and sporting director Victor Orta, with conversations ongoing about strengthening the squad once the January transfer window opens.

And, overall, he still has the fans onside.

There was a sense of frustration that he has had to wait a full two weeks to try and eradicate the mistakes made at Brentford but Sunday will tell us a lot about whether or not this side has the bottle to compete with the best in the division.

But that frustration was tempered by an excitement to get his players back out in front of the home fans and he spoke effusively about the potential return of Caleb Ekuban, which will improve his striker options tenfold.

But while there was delight and relief in equal measure at the condition of returning players from international duty and the rest of his squad, there was also confirmation of the focus he showed throughout the press conference.

With Pontus Jansson qualifying for the World Cup with Sweden, it was put to Christiansen that his potential involvement could create some difficulties between the central defender and teammates.

Not on Christiansen's watch.

The manager reminded Jansson, who endured a nightmare start to the season, that he must earn his place in the Swedish squad that travels to Russia next summer by delivering consistent performances at club level - confirming the expectations he places on his playing staff.

Perhaps his most interesting - and revealing - answer was left for last, however.

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The manager was reminded of his whereabouts - the Lucas Radebe Suite - a corner of the West Stand named after one of Leeds United's greatest players and the very definition of the leader.

And he was also reminded of the leadership qualities the South African possessed during his time at the club before being pressed on whether he felt he had enough characters to call upon in his current squad to fulfil that role.

His answer was non-committal at best.

"Well I have what I have," he said.

It was followed by: "And I'm pleased with that and I have to find the best solution for the situation and I know how to handle it.

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"If I don't have the characters I will find them."

He was asked if he felt he possessed that 'character' and his reply was much firmer in its delivery: "I have it, yeah," he added, but the previous answer created more questions than it provided answers.

The game against Middlesbrough provides his players with the perfect opportunity to step up to the plate and make themselves counted.